Wikipedia:WikiProject Military history/Academy/Nomenclature for the Eastern Front of World War II or the Great Patriotic War

In the English Wikipedia, when multiple terms for a single entity are available, the term most common in the English-speaking world is generally preferred.

When referring to events on Eastern Front in World War Two, even when viewed from a Russian or Soviet perspective, the term "Great Patriotic War" should not be used. Instead, terms such as "Second World War" or "Eastern Front Campaign of the Second World War" or (when context is clear) ""Eastern Front Campaign" or "Eastern Front" or other similar appropriate terms should be used. (In all the examples shown, the link would be usually be piped to Eastern Front (World War II), e. g. [[Eastern Front (World War II)|Second World War]].)

Exception: actual titles and direct quotes are not to be changed. For instance:

• "Ivanovich was awarded the medal 'Hero of the Great Patriotic War'"
• "Stavka Order #253 began 'This war in which we are engaged, the Great Patriotic War...'"

War Events and Remembrance

While the above applies to events that occurred during the conflict and other entities directly associated with the conflict, entities and events related to Russian remembrance of the conflict may be treated differently.

For example: "Ivanovich commanded a tank division during the Second World War" (or "Ivanovich commanded a tank division on the Eastern Front" or "Ivanovich commanded a tank division on the Eastern Front during WWII" or similar). This describes an event of the war, so WWII or Eastern Front or some close variation is used.

But all of these are acceptable:

• "Androprov's memorial to the heroes of the Great Patriotic War was erected in 1975."
• "Androprov's memorial to the heroes of the Second World War was erected in 1975."
• "Androprov's memorial to the heroes of the Eastern Front was erected in 1975."

In cases regarding remembrance, editors are advised to use their best judgement, and are strongly advised not change terminology existing in an article without first engaging on the article talk page.

Reasons

There is no one right and true answer to the question of whether Great Patriotic War or Eastern Front / Second World War is "better". However, the guidance embodied in this essay is based on the following considerations:

• That edit-warring and endless uncertainty over this subject is undesirable.
• That there were three discussions on this subject in the fall of 2010:
  • Discussion opened 26 September 2010
  • Discussion opened 30 September 2010
  • Discussion opened 14 November 2010
• That about twenty editors engaged in these discussions, and although arguments were extensive and nuanced and covered many subtle points, it is reasonable to say, in summary, that the numbers ran about 2-1 in favor of "Eastern Front / World War II" over "Great Patriotic War".
• But that no consensus emerged regarding which term to use when referring to memorials and other entities related to Russian remembrance.
• And that it is fair to say that, in summary, the core arguments boiled down to these:
  • In favor of "Eastern Front / World War II": From a purely practical point of view, a far larger proportion of the readership will recognise WWII over Great Patriotic War, making the context of the article easier to follow without using the link. (This follows the principle that the Wikipedia is accessible to everyone.)
  • In favor of "Great Patriotic War": This is the term used in Russia. And we are writing about events in Russia. And we should use the term that is appropriate to the context in which we are writing. (This follows the principle that we should use terms preferred by the subject rather than imposing our own.)
• And in the opinion of this essay, both of the above arguments are strong and cogent, but that the first argument is at least slightly stronger.

See also

• Great Patriotic War (term)